Work Text:
Iruka didn’t mean to sync up his laundry day with Gai, but it just so happened to line up. Iruka wasn’t complaining at all though.
Ever since Naruto left to train and hide, Iruka thought he would feel an emptiness, but instead he has been filled with worry and panic. The Akatsuki were catching Jinchuriki all over the ninja world and Naruto was somewhere in the wilderness with a pervert.
Well, he is also a great sannin, but still.
Iruka was worried to say the least.
That was where Gai’s pecs came in.
The laundromat by the jounin barracks was shut down when the owner retired and Iruka’s favorite one started to get inundated with grumpy, chakra-exhausted jounin. (This mostly included Kakashi, though Iruka would never admit to staring at the copy-nin in his undershirt only openly and he switched his laundry day to another day promptly!)
Iruka was annoyed because he ran out of underwear waiting for his new laundry day and he always hated the way the cotton of the loose chuunin pants rubbed him. He was just putting his load in the dryer when Gai sprang -quite literally- into the building.
“Fellow shinobi!” He was loud and excited whereas everyone else was blinking away sleep from their eyes. “What a glorious way to hone our skills together! Let us all do our best and get out every stain!”
Iruka heard a few sighs, but he was laser focused on Gai.
He felt like the polar opposite to Iruka. Gai was confident, positive, and fearless. Iruka knew he could be those things, but his worry had him feeling the opposite.
Then Iruka realized why. Gai was so confident because he was strong. He was probably the physically strongest ninja in the village. Iruka knew he was pretty strong for his size and people always commented on his musculature, but he was nowhere near Gai’s level.
Iruka realized this solely because it was laundry day and Gai was wearing what was clearly a very old shirt. It was tight and the sleeves were cut off. Gai was ripped. His pecs were like mountains on his chest and his arms looked like they were sculpted from marble.
Before he knew what he was doing, Iruka was speaking to the behemoth, “Gai-sensei… I couldn’t help but notice…” Iruka blushed and pointed vaguely at Gai’s arms and chest. “You are very fit…”
“Yes, Iruka-sensei! Thank you for noticing! One must always be ready and I am no exception!” Gai flashed his teeth and the shine caused Iruka to blink uncomfortably. “We are in the springtime of our youth! Now is the time to build!”
Iruka perked up. “Build? Muscles you mean?”
“Everything! Build stamina and poses and challenges and people most importantly! Building up the next generation!” Gai looked like he was going to get emotional. “I know you are the most important person to the youth and their education. Becoming a sensei has given me more vigor then I can imagine! You must be brimming with youthful passion!!”
Iruka wasn’t sure what to say to that, but he figured it was a compliment and he backpedaled. “No, no, I am feeling more and more useless. I would love to feel the way you do though.” Iruka’s eyes trailed to Gai’s amble chest unconsciously.
“Train with me!” Gai said with a 1000 watt smile.
Iruka blushed and looked around him. His fellow shinobi were looking openly now at them both and Iruka felt judged. It caused his pride to prickle. Did they not think he could keep up with the great green beast of Konoha?
“That’s a great idea,” Iruka responded slowly and carefully, making sure the on-lookers saw him without hesitation. They looked like Iruka was signing his death warrant.
Gai jumped with an enthusiastic “YOSH!” and pumped his arm with his fist. His arm muscles swelled at the action and Iruka knew he would not regret this decision.
—
Iruka cursed his students. His last shirt was in tatters. He had had to change shirts three times today already from stains and twice yesterday, which meant that he had no clean shirts for tomorrow.
He sighed as he took his laundry to the cleaners a day early. He was in just his tattered shirt as he had no other clothes to wear.
The moment he noticed Kakashi, he realized that this was his old laundry day. Kakashi looked just as exhausted as ever. Tsunade had been working him senseless and it was showing. Naruto had only been gone for a few months now, but it seemed looked like Kakashi was suffering from the loss of his team for years.
“Iruka-sensei?” Izumo was there and Iruka cursed himself for not noticing his friend.
“Izumo! I mean. Hey…” Iruka noticed Kakashi look at them and he unconsciously tugged on the fringe-like shredding on his sleeve.
“Wow, have you been… working out?” Izumo asked and his eyes were looking right at Iruka’s bulging bicep.
Iruka blushed, “Yes.”
Izumo smirked something fierce. “You’ve found a new swolemate?”
Iruka sputtered, “A what?!”
“You know, someone to work out with! Whoever it is must be amazing…”
“I’ll have you know I’ve always been muscular, thank you very much!” Iruka started to move away from his friend to start his laundry journey.
“Yeah, but ever since… you know who went to jail, you haven’t been training as hard as you used to… I’m glad you have a new swolemate.” Izumo was smiling in a nice way, but Iruka didn’t like it one bit.
“Stop saying that!” Iruka had his back to the crowd, which was Izumo, Kakashi, and a few civilians he didn’t recognize.
Izumo left him alone for a blissful few moments while he loaded his washing machine.
“He’s been looking at you,” Izumo whispered by his side and Iruka nearly jumped out of his skin.
“Who?”
“You know who. You should talk to him!” Izumo stage whispered and Iruka barely resisted cupping a hand over his fat mouth.
“Never and don’t talk about it…” Iruka wished his friend was less observant and didn’t notice his stupid crush on Kakashi.
“Come on, he is doing a horrible job of pretending to not notice your sculpted arms and he has been done and poorly folding his clothes for like ten minutes now.”
Iruka looked up and over at Kakashi. The grey-haired man’s eye snapped down to his task of carefully and perfectly folding a sleeveless undershirt.
“He’s just a perfectionist. He isn’t into me, just drop it.” Iruka wanted nothing more than to bolt from the area, but the laundromat had a strict “don’t leave your machine” policy.
“I’m sure he is. You just want to be asked out first don’t you? Classic Iruka wanting validation and attention.”
That got Iruka’s attention alright. “What’s that supposed to mean?!”
“Ever since you were a kid, you always wanted attention and acknowledgement. You want to be chased, I get it, but really, it’s a bit much.”
“That’s so rude, Izumo…”
“No, it’s the truth. Now you are buffing up and showing off in the weirdest ways… But it’s working… I should try this actually… Who are you working with?”
Iruka’s eyebrow was twitching. Normally Izumo was better than Kotetsu and didn’t antagonize him this much. “It’s Gai-sensei actually,” Iruka answered trying not to show his ire.
Izumo froze like Iruka hit him with a poisoned senbon. “Gai?!”
“SH! Jeez Izumo, we are in public. Has Kotestsu rubbed off on you?” Iruka almosted laughed at the implication.
“If only,” Izumo joked and they both laughed at their mutual pinning problems.
“But seriously, Gai? That’s amazing. I can’t believe you can keep up.”
Iruka looked peeved. “And why’s that?”
Izumo knew he hit a nerve and backtracked, “No, no, I know you are really strong, it’s just… it’s Gai…”
Iruka nodded, “Yeah and I’m beating him in some things I’ll have you know.”
Kakashi finished folding his clothes during their whispered argument and was slowly walking out of the building.
Izumo elbowed Iruka hard and he decided it was easier to talk to his crush rather than Izumo.
“Kakashi-sensei, how are you?” Iruka cursed himself. Kakashi was clearly not doing well. He probably wanted to go home and sleep.
Kakashi glanced at Iruka and he didn’t miss the way that single eye trailed up his exposed arm. It caused a tingle up Iruka’s spine and he knew that he had it bad.
“Maa, sensei, I’m between missions. It’s good to be home.”
“Welcome home,” Iruka said automatically from his time at the mission desk. “I mean… I’m sure you want to get home then! I won’t keep you…”
Kakashi’s tired eye was fixed on Iruka’s face, like he was shocked by the welcome and yet it wasn’t a bad feeling he was getting from the older man.
“Thank you,” Kakashi said and he bowed slightly and left quickly.
“Wow,” Izumo said as he slapped Iruka on the back sympathetically. “That was sad.”
“Shut up!” Iruka snapped out of staring at the door to turn back to his laundry, which had just finished the spin cycle and beeped completion.
“He’s definitely into you! He couldn’t take his eye off you.”
“We were having a conversation, Izumo, it’s rude to just… look away…” Iruka reasoned as he haphazardly threw everything into the dryer.
“Well, if you really think that, then I give you a challenge,” Izumo had that look in his eye and Iruka was worried, but nodded anyway. “Get him to ask you out.”
Iruka nearly dropped his shirt in shock, “What?”
“You heard me, don’t play stupid… Unless you think Kakashi would like it…” Izumo actually looked like he was considering that.
“No, I…” Iruka thought about it. The feeling he got just thinking that Kakashi was checking him out was titillating. Maybe it would be fun to see if he could get Kakashi’s attention more. Not for anything serious, he didn’t know if Kakashi liked guys even, but for his own confidence. “Gai-sensei always says to take every challenge life throws at you… So I guess I accept.”
Izumo looked excited and Iruka matched him.
“Oh and also, let me in on your workout routine… I want to try it too,” Izumo added.
Iruka scoffed. “You wouldn't be able to handle it.”
Izumo huffed and made some argument about how he was also a chuunin and not to underestimate him, but Iruka was already tuning him out.
He was planning how he would seduce the great Sharingan Kakashi. The smile that rose to his face would have made his prankster teenage self proud.
The man wouldn’t know what hit him.